This could turn out to be driest August on record

Ed Balint CantonRep.com staff writer @ebalintREP

Sunday

Aug 30, 2015 at 8:15 AM

June brought buckets of rain. August has been desert-like. So much so that the Akron-Canton area may set its all-time low for rainfall in August. This region has been among the most parched in the state.

The Akron-Canton area is on pace to set the all-time low for rainfall in the month of August.

Parched lawns, iffy sweet corn crops and increased water usage at area farms are evidence of the arid climate.

With two days left in the month, the Akron-Canton area had recorded 0.38 inches of rain, according to the National Weather Service in Cleveland. That would beat the current record low of 0.49 inches in August 1970.

Even more desertlike is the New Philadelphia area, with an August rain total of 0.13 inches, according to the National Weather Service. Another dry zone has been Wooster, measuring 0.59 inches.

But possible showers and thunderstorms today could deny the area a new historic mark, said Brian Mitchell, meteorologist at the weather service.

Even so, the Canton area would be well within striking distance of the second-driest August. A total of 0.77 inches of rainfall was recorded in both 1910 and 1957, Mitchell said.

Northeast Ohio is designated “abnormally dry,” Mitchell explained. The next climate level would be moderate drought, followed by severe drought, extreme drought and exceptional drought.

September may get us back to normal, he said. Average or above-average rainfall is forecast through Sept. 11. A typical September gets 3.45 inches.

The Canton-Akron area is among the driest regions in the state this month. Mansfield has recorded 1.13 inches; Toledo registered 2.82 inches; Youngstown has reported 2.49 inches.

WEATHER SWING

The moisture-free weather follows an excessively soggy June. That month — with 8.55 inches of rain — was the second wettest on record for Stark County, according to the weather service.

Among those witnessing the meteorological extremes this summer has been Carl Mazzocca, owner of Mazzocca’s Greenhouse in Tuscarawas Township.

Mazzocca said the rainless conditions have punished yards and gardens. The dry spell began in early July, he said.

“It’s definitely dry out there, there’s no getting around it,” he said Saturday. “In my line of work, it’s not challenging for me to grow my plants and flowers because I can water them (and) I irrigate them, so it’s going to take more irrigation for me, but the bigger concern would be the consumer.

“If you can’t get water to your garden, it’s probably essentially done by now,” Mazzocca added. “If you look around, you’ll see how dry the lawns are — you don’t see it too often like that.”

Plant sales have been adversely affected by rain and the lack of it this summer, Mazzocca said. Business got a boost in July, he said.

And “it’s starting to pick up now with the cooler weather,” he said, referring to mum, cornstalk and straw bale sales.

But Mazzocca said he expects the dry weather to hurt this fall’s sweet corn harvest.

CROPS IMPACTED

Fichter Farm is among the area growers who have battled the summer’s weather pattern.

Hank and Joli Fichter operate the farm in Columbiana County near the Stark County line, north of Minerva. The farm focuses on community-supported agriculture. Specializing in naturally-grown produce, including tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, onions, cabbage, kale, cucumbers, squash and eggplant, Fichter Farms has about 40 subscribers who pay in advance for a share of the farm’s seasonal produce.

Hank Fichter said this summer has been the most daunting climate-wise in the eight years he has been in the farming business.

On Saturday, he was busy running water hoses to his thirsty fields. A large pond is used for irrigation and solar panels supply power on the sustainable farm.

“It’s impacted our business terribly,” he said.

In June, with the sloping land, the lack of sunshine was the culprit as much as excessive rain, Fichter said. The delivery schedule was pushed back one week this summer.

Fall crops — including winter squash, cabbage, turnips and cauliflower — will be dependent on the weather, he said.

“We had two months of monsoon, two weeks of summer and then we went immediately into fall and a drought,” he said. “And that kind of sums up our season altogether.”